Say It’s Forever (Fate #1)

Chapter 2

2

WINTER

“ D on’t cry; your tears will freeze.” My sister, Libby, presses her warm hands against my cheeks. I drop my forehead to hers. I don’t want to leave. Okay, I do, but I don’t want to leave without her. Libby and I have been together our whole lives. I haven’t gone one day without seeing her. I can’t even imagine her not being in my life on a daily basis.

“Come with me,” I whisper. We both can leave this life behind. What for, I’m not sure, but it can’t be worse than this. There is a whole other world out there. One we’ve only gotten small peeks of.

“I’ll slow you down.” She gives me a sad smile. Libby has always said her limp is both a blessing and a curse. It makes her less desirable for marriage. That is a plus around here. Girls are married off young and to men twice and sometimes even three times their ages. The thought alone makes me want to vomit.

When Libby was fourteen, she fell off the back porch. Well, if I’m being honest, she was more pushed by our father, but the healer could only do so much to help her recover. Since then, she has had a limp. I begged my father to take her to the hospital. I can still feel the sting of his backhand for even making such a suggestion.

I’ll never forget my sister’s screams. Our parents refused to take her. I should say my father refused because my mother really doesn’t have a say. She does whatever he says. That’s the way things work around here for women. Ultimately, their stupid decision to call a healer to tend to Libby caused her to have a permanent limp. It was a bunch of crap. No one here is a doctor or even a nurse. None of us get to go off to school. We all go to school together on the compound.

“I don’t know if I can leave you.” Libby and I aren’t twins, but a lot of people think we are. I’m older by ten months. She isn’t only my sister but my best friend. The only person I could speak openly to. We share our secret hate of this place together.

“You have to.” She steels her voice the best she can, only making me smile at her. Libby doesn't have a stern bone in her body. The world could be shit to her, and still she is sweet as can be. “There is no other option. You can’t marry him.”

“I know.” My stomach turns thinking of Joseph. It was supposed to be every girl's dream to marry him. He is a prophet, after all. Our parents had never been more proud than when he’d come to ask for my hand in marriage. Making me his third wife. The first had died, and the second has yet to give him a child.

I know he wants me for childbearing more than anything. Libby and I have always held firm to the belief that he killed his first wife. Not that it matters. Even if that is true and everyone knew it, they’d come up with some reason why he did it. I’m sure it would be along the lines of it was God's will. That’s what they say about anything whenever a man speaks on something or has questionable actions. It’s always the same, them pretending to speak for God. I hate them all.

“You’ll do what you have to.” I nod in agreement, knowing what she means.

“I’ll get help.”

“The police.” Libby says the forbidden word.

We’ve been taught to fear the police and government. That they rip families apart. I believe that many families here should be torn apart. Still, a fear that has been instilled in me lingers about the police. It’s hard to know what is true when you’re kept away from the rest of the world. It was only on a very rare occasion that we got to leave our homes and the compound.

“I promise I’ll speak to whomever I have to so I can come back for you,” I vow. I might have to leave her behind tonight, but I will be back for her. Nothing would ever stop that.

“Take this.” Libby slips off her coat. I try not to take it, but it’s pointless.

“I have one.” She ignores me, putting it on over mine.

“It’s snowing,” Libby points out as if we’re not standing in it for me to see. The only light comes from the full moon, which is bright in the sky even with the snow falling all around us. “You remember which way the town is?”

“Yes.”

Libby takes my bag from me and manages to tie it so that I can wear it around me without having to carry it in my hand.

A month ago, Father had taken us into town. He’d been in a good mood and needed help picking up an order. The other boys that would normally go with him had been busy building a new house. So we were the only other option he had if he wanted help that day.

We’d noticed it was closer than we thought. I just had to find my way back, and then I could get help. I don't think our parents can keep us here against our will if someone out there knows we want out. That is the problem, though. Getting the heck out of here isn’t as easy as just walking away. There are consequences for people that try to leave and get caught.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” I wrap Libby in a tight hug. I’m still worried that she might take some kind of wrath from our parents when they find out I’m gone. Hopefully that won’t be until tomorrow.

“Now go.” She sniffles, stepping back from me.

I give my sister one last look before I take off toward the woods, hoping the trees will help protect me from the wind and some of the snow that is getting thicker by the second, but thankfully the moon never falters, giving me the light I need to make my way through the thick trees.

It doesn’t take long before my toes start to ache from the cold. I’d put on a few pairs of socks, but my shoes are covered in snow, soaked through. I push myself to keep going. I should have hit the road by now. I stop and spin around in a circle, realizing I’m not sure which way is which. The snow covers my tracks as quickly as I make them.

“Please,” I beg anyone that will listen. I drop my head back and stare up at the sky. The cold is quickly spreading throughout my body. I feel it settling into my bones.

Keep going . I push myself. I have to keep moving. If I stop now, I’ll never make it out of here. I would truly leave my sister behind then. The snow grows thicker with each step I take. My breath catches when I finally see a break in the tree line. I sprint toward it, stumbling out of the woods to see a wooden cabin. A porch covers the entire bottom level.

I debate for a second what I should do. I have no freaking clue who lives there. I’m still in the middle of nowhere. I decide it doesn’t matter. I can’t make it much farther. It’s collapse in the woods to die or take my chances.

I walk up the steps to the front door. I’m about to knock when a giant dog—maybe even a wolf—steps around the side of the deck, its eyes trained right on me. The moon gives them a bright yellow glow. It tentatively walks toward me, trying to figure out my scent. I step back to the door. I try to knock on it, but no one answers. The dog moves closer.

“You’re a big boy.” I hold my hand out. The dog sniffs it, then ducks his head so it goes under my hand so I can pet him. I let out a breath. My knees give out from the mixture of panic and the cold taking over. The dog moves in close, pressing its body against mine. I wrap my arms around him, burying my face in his fur.

The rest of the world melts away as I slip into darkness. My sister’s face is the last thing I see.